Five Elders

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Five Elders
Five Elders
Statistics
Japanese Name:	五老星
Romanized Name:	Gorōsei
Official English Name:	Five Elders (Viz), Five Elder Stars (FUNimation)
Debut:	Chapter 233; Episode 151
Affiliations:	World Government
Occupations:	Heads of the World Government
Status:	Alive

The Gorosei (literally meaning "Five Elder Stars") are the heads of the World Government, and as such, they essentially rule the entire world. They are the five men who rule above the Marines, Cipher Pol, and the ones who made a pact with the Shichibukai. So far, none of their names have been revealed.

Appearances

Gorosei	Appearance	History	Seiyu/Voice actors
	He has a scar on the left side of his face, wears a hat over gray dreadlocks, and wields a walking cane.	He had the most lines in his part when the Gorosei are introduced. He also spoke of Luffy's relationship with Garp and how Blackbeard is making his move after the Battle of Marineford.	Keiichi Noda (Japanese), Jerry Russell (English)
	He is a tall and thin bearded man.	He spoke with Professor Clover during the Ohara Incident, and ordered Spandine to shoot the archaeologist for attempting to speak the Ancient Kingdom's lost name. After the war, he also wondered about the connection between Luffy and Silvers Rayleigh and acknowledged Blackbeard's understanding of Whitebeard's territories.	Keiichi Sonobe, Masato Hirano
	He is bald, and has large birthmark spots on his forehead, much like former Soviet premier Mikhail Gorbachev. He is given a beard in the anime.	He picked up Monkey D. Luffy's new wanted poster and commented on Crocodile's treachery and how they cannot allow Luffy to run loose. He also commented that Aokiji would have to watch his post for his carefree antics. When the war against the Whitebeard Pirates was over, he lamented Jinbe's defection from the Shichibukai (which caused the inter-species relationship to breakdown) and indicated how Blackbeard's unique trait of owning two Devil Fruit powers has allowed him to be closer to the empty Yonko position than any other pirate.	Masato Hirano
	He is the oldest looking. He is bald, with glasses and a white gi, much like Mahatma Gandhi. He also holds a samurai sword with him. He is the only one of the five to not wear a black suit, and the only one without facial hair.	He is the one who gives an answer to the Marine soldier who reports that Shanks and Whitebeard have successfully met each other. After the Battle of Marineford, he was cleaning his sword while commenting on the collapse of the Three Great Powers and how to fill the three vacant Shichibukai spots, as well as how the "D." is a name meaning "danger" to the world.	Kenichi Ogata (Japanese), Kent Williams (English)
	He is the youngest looking of the five elders, he sports blond hair, a beard of the same color, and has a scar on his chest. He also wears his suit with the shirt buttons open, and without a tie.	This elder was the one who said how the balance of the three great powers must not fall. After Whitebeard's death and the rise of the New Age, he spoke up about filling the Shichibukai positions with influential pirates when they make their moves, and pondering whether Marco the Phoenix and the remainder of the Whitebeard Pirates, or one of the three remaining Yonko, would be able to take down Blackbeard.	Yasunori Masutani

Known Knowledge

The tall thin one with the mustache (second from right) spoke with Professor Clover and ordered Spandine to kill him before the archaeologist could speak the Great Kingdom's name. They have shown to have at least a basic knowledge of the occurrences of the Void Century, according to their shocked reactions to Professor Clover's statements. They have shown a paranoid fear of someone reviving the ancient weapons, to the point of forbidding its research and ordering the utter destruction of the entire country of Ohara, though given what is known of the Void Century, they may simply be using that as an excuse in order to prevent information they do not want leaked to the public from getting out. Despite this, they are not completely heartless, as they were hesitant about ordering the destruction of Ohara.

Abilities and Powers

Being at the top of the World Government, they are the rulers of the entire world, and have complete control over all government affiliated organizations; such as the police, the ten Cipher Pol units, and even the Marines; as they are all completely subservient to their commands. Even the fleet admiral's of the Marines orders can be vetoed by their decisions. They can declare a Buster Call attack on any island that they deem a threat and can pass that authority onto lower World Government ranking agents. They can revoke a Shichibukai's title, if they decide that he/she is not living up to their duties as a Shichibukai.

However, they only seem to care about the public image of the World Government: they will go to great lengths to keep the public's view of them in a good light. They have ordered the killing of an entire island of people to hide the discovery of the Void Century; they have hidden the fact that Gekko Moriah was beaten by Luffy; and they have even kept the escape of Level 6 inmates of Impel Down a secret.

Some of these decisions have even angered Sengoku, a true follower of Absolute Justice and the Marines. However, it is unknown how much influence and command the elders have over the World Nobles, or vice versa, as the World Nobles were described to possess the power to do anything they desire.

However, it can be argued that the Gorosei have more power, as they are considered the heads of the Government, outranking the World Government's Commander in Chief, Kong. They allowed the Sun Pirates freedom when Jinbe joined the Shichibukai and the Marines following their orders without hesitation, a testament of their influence as such a decision went against the World Nobles, due to many of the Sun Pirates being former slaves that the World Nobles wanted back, though this did not stop Mjosgard from going to retrieve them.

Political powers aside, it is currently unknown how strong each one of the elders are. However, due to their clear muscles and scars, and that one of them is wielding a sword, it would appear that they have some battle experience and fighting capabilities.

History

Past

They were around twenty two years ago, when they ordered the Buster Call against Ohara. Their membership (and appearances) have not altered at least in the last twenty two years.

Spandam manipulated them to give him the authority to allow him to seek out the blueprints for Pluton.

Sea of Survival: Super Rookies Saga

Sky Island Saga

They appeared for the first time when they were discussing the situation around Shanks and Whitebeard. They tried to keep Whitebeard and Shanks apart. They were also distressed with Crocodile due to his actions in Alabasta and his subsequent dismissal from the Shichibukai.

Water 7 Saga

Later, they heard of Aokiji sneaking out of Marine Headquarters and became disappointed with him. They remarked that he should be careful with his rank.

Later, after the Enies Lobby raid, they were shocked to hear that Shanks had successfully met with Whitebeard.

Summit War Saga

After the war, they gathered to discuss the state the world was in. They talked about how Luffy has become a huge threat as well as his relations to Garp and Dragon. One of them comments on how their power structure has almost completely collapsed, and asks how they will fill the three vacant Shichibukai positions. They decide to observe world events for now until they can find an influential enough person.

They then discuss Blackbeard and his activities in the New World, mentioning that he has defeated one of the Supernovas and that he is in the lead for replacing Whitebeard as one of the Yonko. They believe that the only people who can stop his rise to power are the three remaining Yonko and the Whitebeard Pirates, who are currently under Marco's command. Their last comment is on The Will of D., saying that "D always means danger" and that it has reached the public too much as of late.

The Final Sea: The New World Saga

Pirate Alliance Saga

Following the discovered falsehood behind the story about Donquixote Doflamingo's resignation from the Shichibukai and abdication of his throne, Fleet Admiral Sakazuki said he would contact the Gorosei in order to discuss the matter.